Australian housewife-superstar Dame Edna Everage has decided to retire after a stage career spanning 57 years.

Barry Humphries, the actor and satirist who created the Tony Award-winning character know for her purple hair, oversized rhinestone glasses and gladiolis, is launching his two-month farewell tour, Eat Pray Laugh!, in Canberra on June 22.

He then wants to take the show to the UK and New York over the next two years, his publicist, Kerry O'Brien said.

At 78, Barry said the time has come to retire all his various alter egos from the stage, the most famous of whom is Dame Edna.

"She's a little weary of touring and strange hotels," Barry told Australian Broadcasting Corp radio in Canberra, explaining his most enduring character's decision to retire.

Dame Edna was a staple of television and stage in Britain and Australia before Barry won a Tony Award in 2000 for his Broadway show Dame Edna, The Royal Tour.